154 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE. 



thinking. Most of us are dissatisfied with our present condition 

 and desire better things. Notwithstanding the fact that our 

 dairymen were never more prosperous than they are today, we 

 see how we could use a larger income to excellent advantage. 

 The demands were never so great as at the present time and the 

 question of how we shall meet them is the one for each of us to 

 answer. We cannot complain of low prices for milk, cream, 

 butter, or any of the by products like beef, veal or pork ; not for 

 years has the number of domestic animals been so small in pro- 

 portion to the population of our country as it is at the present 

 time, and with the increase in exports, the increase in population 

 and the fact that the West is fast filling up and grazing lands are 

 become centers of population, it would seem that we are assured 

 of good prices for an indefinite period. A matter of special 

 interest to dairymen is found in the fact that the last census shows 

 an increase in population of the United States of over twenty 

 per cent during the ten years preceding while the increase in the 

 number of milch cows for the same period was only about four 

 per cent. It is gratifying to know that New England's increase 

 was about eight per cent or double that of any or all other sections 

 of the country. We can congratulate ourselves that we are still 

 ahead of the other fellow and yet at the present time we can 

 only find fault with ourselves because we have not more of these 

 products for sale. Our farms are capable of producing more, 

 and we are slow to admit that we are not capable of managing 

 a larger business. We are thoroughly convinced there is a 

 splendid opportunity and that the possibilities in dairying in New 

 England were never so good as at the present time. But the 

 question is, What are we going to do about it ? Are we to slacken 

 the pace while we look over our shoulders to see how far behind 

 the other dairy sections are? Shall we let our neighbors reap 

 the benefit of the favorable conditions or are we prepared to 

 arouse ourselves to still greater activity and greater usefulness? 

 If so we may begin to plan wisely and hopefully for the future. 

 We do not want our boys to grow up to manhood surrounded 

 with excellent opportunities, but with no definite aim in life. 

 We expect them to make their mark in the world and achieve 

 greater success than the sons of our neighbors. Let us suppose 

 we have a farm of about 102 acres, which is the average size of 

 farms in New England. About forty acres of this is improved 



